he U.S. market is crucial for fruit-producing countries in Latin America due to its proximity and U.S. consumer preference for produce from the Southern Hemisphere. As a result, the ongoing stoppage by the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) at U.S. ports from Maine to Texas has raised concerns among these supplier countries, as the strike could disrupt their fruit shipments to this vital market.

Ecuador

To understand the impact on Ecuador's banana industry, we spoke with Richard Salazar, executive director of the Association of Banana Marketing and Export (ACORBANEC). Salazar explained that in 2024, Ecuador exported 31.1 million boxes of bananas to the United States, accounting for nearly 13% of the country's total banana exports.

He noted that the U.S. market has experienced a 34.6% increase in banana imports this year. Salazar clarified that 56% of Ecuador's banana exports to the U.S. are sent to the West Coast, while the remaining 44% go to the Atlantic Coast, which is currently facing disruptions.

So far, Salazar said, there have been no major complications, but if the issues persist, the industry expects to see an impact starting next week. According to monitoring, many shipping companies have been able to unload fruit without problems, and exports have been normal this week. However, Salazar anticipates the effects will become apparent in the coming weeks if disruptions continue.

Peru

Similarly, Peru has experienced remarkable growth in blueberry exports to the U.S. this season, with 18,000 tons worth $162 million shipped so far, according to intelligence firm Fluctuante.

With the U.S. as the primary destination for Peruvian blueberries, fresh produce industry groups are closely monitoring the situation and hoping for a swift resolution to minimize disruptions during the peak export season.

Gabriel Amaro, president of the Peruvian Agricultural Producers Association (AGAP), said, “This situation obviously affects us because the United States is our main market, and we are currently in the blueberry, grape, and asparagus season.”

“Let's hope that the stoppage lasts a short time because our products are fresh and there is a tremendous queue of ships that are waiting to enter with the fruit”.

In the event that the stoppage is extended, Amaro explained, there are other ports, but Miami and Philadelphia are key. “Fortunately, it is not such a distant destination, so the fruit can be held for a few days. If the strike is short-lived and resolved this week, we could have 1 to 3 days to sell the fruit. If resolved this week, the damage would be minimal.”

There is also the possibility of redirecting the fruit to other destinations. He explained that this depends on the routes established by shipping companies. “Since there was prior notice, the companies have had time to plan potential route changes,” Amaro said.

Chile

In statements to Portalfruticola.com, the president of Frutas de Chile, Iván Marambio, said they are closely monitoring the situation, receiving constant updates from their U.S. office, in addition to the efforts made by the Chilean embassy in Washington.

He emphasized that “we view this with great concern; every day that this lasts means an impact on the global logistics chain, not only in the United States but in all markets, for example in the movement of containers”.

The deputy minister of the Ministry of Agriculture, Ignacia Fernández, was clear in saying that “the concern of the industry is shared by the Government, monitoring the situation through our ambassador in the United States, as well as the network of agricultural and commercial attachés in the different cities”.

Fernández added, “Fortunately, we are still very early in the season, so the impact of these stoppages on our exports to the U.S. has been minimal. However, it is important to monitor the situation daily, and we hope that no additional measures will be necessary as long as this continues.”

The view of the private sector was provided by Marambio, who added that “we understand that the positions today between employers and workers are very close, the amounts that were being discussed are quite close and we hope that this will be resolved as soon as possible and we need it to be so”.

“We hope that this can be solved as soon as possible, so if the strike lasts, we will have to start to see how industries, look for alternative shipping to other ports, which makes the freight more expensive anyway, but we would have to divert the fruit and look for other alternatives,” said the president of Frutas de Chile.

In the same line, the president of the National Society of Agriculture (SNA), Antonio Walker said “Luckily the strike comes in a period when we do not have a harvest peak, but these are not good signals that do not generate confidence, the commercial programs contracted between exporters and receivers of the United States are altered”.

Walker added that “fortunately, there are a number of containers that are not relevant at the moment, but the issue is that the logistics have to work in a very coordinated way so that we do not have this type of problems during the harvest and harvest peaks”.

Marambio emphasized that the products facing a more critical situation are citrus, kiwis and avocados, which are the backlog for the 2023-2024 season.

He added that in case the strike is extended, the alternative is to divert to the west coast, to the port of Los Angeles, and truck from the west coast to the center and the east coast.

*At the close of this edition, the strike continued, but the dockworkers and USMX reached an agreement late yesterday.